


The Littlest Fox

by Ereana



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Crushes, Everyone loves Yachi, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Humor, Inarizaki!Yachi, Mutual Pining, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:13:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27699473
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ereana/pseuds/Ereana
Summary: Yachi wasn’t sure what to expect when her mom’s new job offer sent them to the other side of the country.  A chance to meet new people, make new friends, and maybe do something brave for once.Becoming the first year (and only) manager of the Inarizaki High boy’s volleyball team was not on her list but it sure is exciting!
Relationships: Miya Atsumu & Yachi Hitoka, Miya Osamu/Yachi Hitoka, Yachi Hitoka & Inarizaki Volleyball Club
Comments: 98
Kudos: 292





	1. New School

The uniform is laid out neatly on the bed, a wholly frightening sight, but to Yachi Hitoka it may as well have been a hissing three headed demon. She gulps and reaches out a shaking hand towards the blouse and ribbon band. It doesn’t lash out and bite her which is encouraging — and means it’s probably not cursed… probably — but the pit of nerves in her stomach doesn’t abate.

A new uniform for a new school.

She can hear her mother downstairs in the kitchen, she’d promised to make breakfast today, but cooking had never been a strong point of hers, and Yachi can spare a little concern to worry about the muffled swearing. It’s weird having a downstairs, weird to live in a house after so many years in that apartment. It feels big, too big at times, but it’s only been a week and she’s sure she’ll get used to it eventually.

She hopes she will anyway.

For her mother’s sake at least if not hers.

Through the bedroom window, she can hear birds cawing and the sounds of a sleepy town slowly stirring to life. If she closes her eyes she can almost pretend she’s back in Miyagi, in her small bedroom surrounded by notebooks and scraps of paper with her little doodles on the,

Her notebooks haven’t arrived at the new place, along with her stationary and some of her mother’s shoes and clothes. A mix up with one of the moving van’s meant they wouldn’t get here for another three days at least. She would have liked to bring one with her today like some sort of protective talisman she could cling to, but it was not to be.

The boxes that had arrived were unpacked, and her new room was coming together. She does want to paint it eventually; the dull lime green colour it currently hurts her eyes if she looks at it for too long and clashes horribly with the carpet.

Her room is bigger too, and the furniture that did make it doesn’t fill it up completely leaving wide empty spaces that make her itch to fill them up. Her mother has bought her a big board of her very own. She’s hung it up next to her desk and pinned a few of her old drawings to it, the ones she’d brought in a backpack and had subsequently made the trip to Amagasaki.

An alarming smell of burning food begins to fill the air which presents a much more real danger than her imagination’s worries about a sentient evil uniform, so she begins to change.

The Karasuno uniform had been cuter but this one is fine too.

Everyone, including her mother, has made a big deal of what an impressive school Inarizaki High is and how impressive it was that she got such a high mark on the entrance exam given that she only had a few weeks notice.

The job offer had been rather sudden after all. Yachi can remember the excitement in her mother’s face when she’d come home from work that day, she hadn’t seen her that happy in a long time. She’d been happy too, at first, as she’d listened to her mother’s speech on wonderful opportunities, a real step forward, and how different their lives would be.

And then she’d dropped the bomb about  _ where _ the new job was, and Yachi’s dinner had turned to dirt in her stomach.

She didn’t do well with change.

And for the past three months, everything had been changing. Her applications to other high schools in the area had to be withdrawn and new ones sent off to places she’d never heard of or seen. No time to really say goodbye to the few friends she did have because she was needed to help with the move, to sit entrance exams, to pack up everything she owned into a couple of boxes and leave the only home she’d ever known.

It hadn’t been great for her nerves and now, faced with the possibility of starting at a new school where she knew absolutely no one and would stick out like a sore thumb, she can feel her chest tighten.

Starting a week after term began isn’t great either. Despite all of their haste, she’d still ended up late, and she only hoped that friendship groups in her year hadn’t been fully solidified yet and there was space for her to wiggle into.

She ties the ribbon into a bow around her neck and straightens up her skirt.

_ There’s nothing that can be done about it now. _

Best to throw away thoughts about what might have been and go check if her mother needs any help rescuing breakfast. 

She does.

But between them they manage to scrape together something decent that ensures they’ll both have a full stomach until lunch.

“So how are you feeling?” Yachi blinks and looks up from her plate. Her mother is picking one of her nails, and somehow still looks beautiful even with the smudges on her hands and clothes. “The uniform fits well.”

Yachi smiles and tugs at her sleeve. “Um y-yeah, it fits fine. And I’m a little n-nervous, I guess.” She’s worked out the best route to her new school and has about thirty minutes before she needs to head to the train station. “B-But I’m sure it will be fine. Everyone’s been talking about how good a school this is.”

Her mother hums and nods her head. “Inarizaki is certainly quite prestigious, not only in academics either. I hear several of their sports teams regularly play on the national stage.”

Yachi’s unsure if that’s meant to be a hint or not. Does her mother want her to join a sports club? The thought is so ludicrous that she almost bursts into laughter at the table. Maybe her mother sees some of that in her face because she sighs and interlinks her fingers together, bringing them under her chin.

“I know it’s not been ideal these past few months, it’s a big change and starting at a new place can be scary. But try to think of this as a fresh start, new people to meet, new opportunities to try, maybe you can do something that you’ve never done before. Honestly, I’m a little jealous. My job doesn’t start until next Thursday, so I’ll just be pottering around the house and finishing the decorations while you’re starting on a new adventure.”

Personally, Yachi would much rather stay behind and help decorate than go to school but that option was never given to her. Plus as attractive as becoming a hermit and creating a lair in the cavern of her new room sounded, she didn’t want to hide away from the world.

She wanted to at least try to be braver than she was in middle school.

“I-I’m going to do my best.” She says and is rewarded with her mother’s smile. “Y-You said someone was going to s-show me around?”

“Yes, one of the third years on the student council, I think. She’s called Tobe Aoi, and she’ll be your guide for your first week.”

Yachi hadn’t known the girl was someone as important as a student council member and gulps The bow on her throat feels tighter than before.. 

_ What if I screw up so bad she tells them to expel me? _

No, no. Tobe Aoi is probably an incredibly nice and helpful person, and she should be grateful for her help.

She finishes breakfast with ten minutes to spare and spends the rest of the time double checking her bag. The pens and notebooks aren’t as cute as the ones that are in the missing boxes, but they’ll do and she packs her lunch for the day — leftovers from the curry last night. 

“Bye, mom.” She calls out as she leaves.

“Good luck! I’m looking forward to hearing about your day tonight.” 

As if that’s not another cause to panic — telling stories is not her strong point. It’s also another indicator of how bored her mother is at the moment as she’s not the type of person to take interest in average high school antics.

Yachi’s half expecting the whole house to be finished when she gets back tonight. Her mother’s never been great at being idle. Then again neither is she, even now her fingers twitch for a pen and a clean page to draw on, and she fiddles with the strap on her bag as she waits for the train.

The train is a busy one, but her stop is early enough in the journey that it’s fairly empty when she steps on. As the scenery passes by the window, she settles back in the seat she managed to get and takes a deep breath.

A fresh start, huh?

She’s not looking for a life altering experience or anything, but a little more excitement couldn’t hurt, right?

Around her commuters talk into their phones or to each other, a group of kids in uniforms identical to the one she’s wearing catch her eye, and she briefly considers approaching them before immediately discarding the idea. She doesn’t know what year they’re in, and if a complete stranger approached her on the train, she’d be more inclined to run than stay and make polite conversation.

* * *

The school entrance is bustling with students when she arrives, and she barely gets a chance to take in the building before she’s swept up in the crowd. Inarizaki is a big school, they even have dorms on campus from students who have come from other parts of the country.

Yachi is forever grateful that she doesn’t have to stay in them, that would have been one step too far. But it reinforces the knowledge that this is an impressive school with students who are willing to live in a completely different part of the country to attend. There’s a certain standard to be upheld and it seeps into the aura of the place, very different to her first option of Karasuno High back in Miyagi.

She hopes that she can meet the expectations.

The first class doesn’t start for fifteen minutes, so she has time to try and find this mysterious Tobe-san before she gets hopelessly lost trying to find her classroom. They are due to meet in the corridor past the main door, and she starts to squeeze her way through the mass of students. As she does, the gossip and chatter of the other students fills her ears.

“Oh my gosh, did ya see Atsumu-san yesterday? He’s gotten so much hotter since last year.”

“No way, everyone knows Osamu-san is the better looking one!”

“Yer joking!”

“It’s ridiculous, right? Why have a band be part of yer cheering section if yer going to ask them to stop playing?!”

“Did you hear they caught some second year trying to break in last night? Heard they cornered him on the roof and everything.”

“This is an outrage! An absolute outrage.”

“She’s taking this very hard, isn’t she?”

“How could they do this to us? The school newspaper is an integral part of any high school and—”

“Ya may want to walk away now while ya have the chance.”

Just what kind of school had she enrolled in? A band that wasn’t allowed to play? Students breaking in at night? A scandal at the school newspaper? It was all too much! She quickened her pace and did her best to stay out of everyone’s way. A few people glanced in her direction, but no one made a move towards her which she was grateful for.

The doors were open from the number of students slowly meandering their way inside, and Yachi sucks in a breath once she’s out of the claustrophobic atmosphere of the courtyard. One of the disadvantages of her tiny height is that everyone tends to loom over her which can be very intimidating.

“Excuse me, are you Yachi-chan?” A calm voice asks from behind her, instantly setting off her fight or flight instinct and she jumps back with a ‘meep!’. A couple of students look over at the squeak, and she feels her ears burn in embarrassment. Great.

“Are you okay? I’m sorry for startling you?” Yachi turns her attention to the owner of the voice that had caused her to startle and blinks. 

Once.

Twice.

And then a third time for good measure because the girl in front of her is so pretty. So pretty that Yachi is sure her vocal chords shrivel up in awe. Long, shiny brown hair, kind green eyes, flawless complexion and a light dusting of makeup that perfectly served to accentuate her natural features.

Who is this girl? And why is she bothering to talk to Yachi? Maybe some of the confusion shows on her face because the mystery girl smiles — doing more damage to Yachi’s ability to form words — and gives a little wave.

“Ah, forgive me, I’m Tobe Aoi. I’ll be your guide for the next week while you settle in.” 

Oh.

Yachi gives a hurried bow and fervently wishes for the ground to swallow her. It’s not happened before but there’s always a chance.

“I-I’m sorry! Yes, I know...I mean I know who you are. Not in a creepy way or anything! My mom told me this morning, and I knew to meet you here. Which is obvious because we’re both here and talking, and I’m so sorry for jumping back. I’m Yachi Hitoka, but I guess you probably knew that already,” she babbles and clutches her satchel strap tighter. 

She’s making a fool out of herself again. Less than an hour and she’s already on track for a repeat of middle school. Shame begins to curl in her gut when she looks up and sees that Tobe is still smiling gently at her.

“It’s nice to meet you, Yachi. I hope you like it here at Inarizaki. The bell’s about to go, so why don’t I walk you over to your classroom and we can meet up for lunch for a proper tour.”

It takes a second to sink in, but when it does, she nods her head furiously. “Y-yes Tobe-senpai, that sounds good.”

“Great, you’re in class 1-5, correct?” Tobe asks and starts to walk down the main corridor. Yachi hurries after her, worried she’ll lose track of the first friendly face she’s seen since arriving at the gates.

“That’s right.” She’d made sure to memorise as much of the new student pack she’d been given as she could and had a copy of the map in her bag for navigating between classes.

“That’s not too far actually. I know the school looks big, but that’s mainly for all the sports facilities and dorm rooms we have. The actual school part of it isn’t much bigger than your average high school.” Tobe says, easily navigating the halls with enviable grace. “It was pretty daunting for me when I started my first year but you soon get used to it. And us fellow foreigners have to stick together after all.”

“F-foreigners?” Yachi matches her steps to Tobe and takes note of the way the crowd parts for the pretty third year beside her. The few looks that were sent her way disappear as they all look at Tobe instead and a knot in Yachi’s chest starts to loosen. She’d never done well with attention.

“Students who aren’t originally from Hyogo, this place brings in kids from all over the country. We’re easy to spot though, no Kansai-ben. I’m originally from Tokyo myself. What about you, Yachi-chan?”

“Oh, I’m from Miyagi,” Yachi says as she tries to take in everything going on around her. She thinks she sees a flash of dark red from the corner of her eye but when she turns it’s vanished.

Tobe whistles. “Wow, quite a way then. What made you decide to come to Inarizaki then, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Decide wasn’t quite the word Yachi would have used.

“My mom got a new job here, so we had to move. Inarizaki came highly r-recommended, so I applied.”

Tobe nods and takes them up a flight of stairs. The whole building thrums with life and noise as students and staff navigate their way through the halls. It reminds Yachi of an ant hill but with humans instead of insects.

“Well, congratulations for passing the entrance exam. It’s not easy and the only other way in is usually through a sports scholarship, and competition for those is fierce.”

Yachi can’t help but giggle at that. “I’m not really a sporty person, Tobe-senpai.” 

The other girl looks thrilled and beams at her. “Well, if sports isn’t your thing there’s plenty of other clubs here. Did you have any hobby or interest I could point you towards?”

She hums and twists her satchel strap again, her mother’s words echoing in her head.

_ A fresh start. _

“I-I’m pretty open to most things. I want to try something new, is there a list of clubs anywhere?”

Tobe slows her pace and cocks her head to the side, her ponytail swaying side to side as she thinks. “I think there should be one in the school handbook, and they’re all still recruiting new members. Sport team tryouts are later this week, but I don’t think that’s pertinent for you. Ah, here we are!”

Yachi looks ahead and sure enough a simple sign with 1-5 printed on hangs above them. The path to get here was a little windier than she’d expected, and she hopes that she can remember the way back.

“I’ll meet you here at lunch and show you to the cafeteria. It was nice to meet you, Yachi-chan. I hope you enjoy your first day.” 

Resisting the childish urge to ask Tobe to walk in with her, Yachi manages a wobbly smile and short bow.

“T-Thank you very much, Tobe-senpai. I’ll see you at lunch. S-Sorry again for jumping earlier.”

Tobe waves a finger in a pseudo stern manner. “No need to worry about that, it’s your first day. Of course you’re going to be nervous.”

_ Yes but my nervousness is quite a bit worse than most. _

She doesn’t say that, just nods her head and steels herself to walk into the classroom. Footsteps sound out behind her, and Yachi is once again alone. Well, there are other students waiting around in the corridor, hanging out in small intimate groups chatting about who knows what. She hopes she’ll have her own group eventually, hopes that there will be a place for her here in this big prestigious school as unlikely as it seems.

The door beckons, and she steps inside.

Her new teacher is a pleasant middle-aged man called Nakayama-sensei. He has a soft voice and a patient smile as the other students settle in for the morning. 

“Everyone, please take your seats. We have a new student joining us today, and I expect you all to make her feel welcome. Yachi-san, would you please introduce yourself to the class?” He asks her with that same smile, unaware of the vast pit of gaping dread that opens up in her stomach at the request.

Yachi does not do public speaking.

But she nods and steps forward, she does her best to ignore the twenty or so curious pairs of eyes she can feel looking at her and opens her mouth.

“H-Hello, my name is Yachi Hitoka. I-I’m originally from Miyagi, and I-I hope we can be friends.” She stutters out and bows, cheeks warming at the shakiness of her voice.

“Very good. Yachi-san, I know you’re joining us a little late, so please feel free to ask for help in catching up. Why don’t you take that seat by the window over there, in front of Riseki-kun?” Nakayama points at an empty chair on the right hand side of the classroom, and a boy with dark spiky hair startles up from the desk behind.

Even sitting down she can tell he’s tall, and another squirm of nervousness wiggles through her gut as she imagines him looming over her for the rest of the year. But then he smiles and nods at her, looking a little nervous himself, and she reminds herself that just because her imagination tends to leap towards the worst conclusion doesn’t mean it’s always right.

She hurries over to her new desk and starts to set up her things as the teacher begins to speak to the class again.

“Hey, uh Yachi-chan?”

She freezes and turns her head around to see the boy — Riseki, she corrects herself — smiling sheepishly at her. Up close he looks even taller, he just has to be an athlete of some kind and could probably crush her like a bug.

The smile on his face seems less murdery and more friendly so she’ll withhold judgement for now.

“Y-Yes Riseki-san?” Her voice trembles a little and she doesn’t like it. This morning has already been tough, and she wants to reassure her mother that her daughter didn’t burst into tears on her first day at school because she felt so overwhelmed by everything. 

“Nothing! I-I umm just wanted to say hi is all, and welcome to the class I guess.” he laughs shakily with a hint of self-deprecation and Yachi pauses in her unpacking.

Maybe she won’t be crushed on the first day, after all.

She smiles, it’s small but genuine, and nods her head.

“T-Thank you, Riseki-san.”

It’s a comfort not to be the only nervous one in the room.


	2. A manager?

Photography club, knitting club, cooking club, apparently Inarizaki High was a school that had something for everyone. Interested in the paranormal? There was a club for that? Wanted to try your hand at gardening? Club for that too. A musician? Orchestra right there for you and also several student lead bands as well.

Yachi felt nervous just reading through all of them, never mind actually choosing one. Every time she saw one that might interest her, she’d second guess herself about another option she’d liked the look of just as much. It didn’t help that several of them seemed to be very prestigious and had won an intimidating amount of awards and prizes. Yachi couldn’t really see herself fitting in with any of these high-achieving groups.

At least she could discount the sports ones. Which was a good half of the list, so it really cut things down. It had taken one glance at a page with a glossy photo of the basketball team screaming the title ‘Number one in Japan’ for her to discount even the vague notion of looking at them. Surely, her mother wasn’t expecting her to turn into an athlete? 

Though even after writing off all the sports clubs, her list was still pretty long. At least two pages of her notebook were full of possibilities along with her doodles of question marks, ticks, and when she was feeling particulate frustrated little scribbles and pictures of birds in the corner. She’d considered going to check out some of them, but her own nerves had gotten the better of her. What was she supposed to do? Ask to stay and watch then stand in the corner like some creepy stalker?

If someone came and asked to watch her for an hour or two, she’d run off screaming...or make polite excuses and then run.

At least the rest of her school life was going...okay at least? It had been eleven days since her first day, and the complete social ostracization that she’d feared would happen hadn’t. Thanks to Nakayama-sensei she’d caught up on most of the work she’d missed in the first week and felt comfortable in class, at least academically.

She’d only gotten lost three times and could now easily navigate to the cafeteria, toilets, and the roof though that last one was more accidental than intentional — she had been looking for the staff room to discuss her settling in and had gone up one too many flights of stairs. Progress from the first day when she’d imagined herself a pitiful explorer about to descend into some unknown labyrinth.

Tobe had stayed in contact as well, sort of. The third year was extremely busy as a member of the student council and seemed really popular, so it was understandable she wasn't able to spend all her time with the lonely, new first year student. But whenever they saw each other in the corridors or at the school entrance, the older girl would always make an effort to come and talk to Yachi and ask how she was doing. Yachi really appreciated it especially when her other attempts at building friendships were um...not progressing as well.

It was probably her fault. Too nervous and too scared about saying the wrong thing that she tended to clam up when her classmates asked her questions, or blurt out short one-worded answers that didn’t leave much room for conversation. A couple of them still said ‘hi’ and waved at her when she entered the classroom, and she hoped that with time she’d feel comfortable enough to respond to their overtures of friendship before they stopped trying.

She sighs and looks down at her list once more. They have a small break before History class, and she really wants to make a firm decision before the end of the day. The promise she’d made to herself weighs heavy on her shoulder, and while her resolve to try something new remains as strong as ever, her confidence in applying to one is fading fast. 

High school was meant to be different, and at this rate, it felt depressingly similar to what she had come from. It feels ridiculous to fret about something that thousands of students across the country do, but she does because it’s important. If she’s — potentially — going to give three years of her life to this club, then it has to be good, it has to be something that she enjoys, it has to be with people who she could feel comfortable around. That last one feels like a bit of a pipe dream, but as she hasn’t actually joined a club yet there is still hope, a tiny spec that clings to life in her chest that even her nerves can’t smother.

“Ya still havin’ trouble pickin’, Yachi-san?” She bolts upright at the unexpected question and turns around to come face to face with Riseki. Her desk neighbour doesn’t react to her jump — probably because he’s seen her do it quite a few times now — and points a pencil at her current source of frustration. “I think it might have grown longer since yesterday.”

“It has.” She sighs and lets her shoulders slump. “Everytime I think I’ve made up my mind I see another one that looks interesting, and then I second guess myself and...I’m probably not going to be very good at any of these anyway, not if I can’t even commit to the idea of applying to one.”

“Come on, it’s not that bad. And strugglin’ to pick isn’t a bad thing, ya know? Just means that yer thinkin’ about this really carefully and that’s important too. Trust me, I’ve seen plenty of guys rush straight into things and regret it.” He smiles at her, and Yachi feels some of her worry ease.

Riseki is a nice boy, he’s not loud or pushy like some others she’d known, and he never takes any of her little startles to heart. She feels like they could be friends at times, but they never spend time together outside of class, he always dashes off for lunch and she never sees him when she leaves school either.

“Thank you, Riseki-kun. I-I just want to get this sorted before I miss too much. It feels like there’s almost too much choice here, and everything is so prestigious too.” She has to walk past the school trophy cabinet to get to the cafeteria, and it always feels like it’s looming over her, as if the trophies are watching her and waiting for her to perform some spectacular feat that proves she belongs in these hallowed halls. 

“Hmm, couldn’t help but notice there were no sports clubs on yer list. Not an athlete then?” Riseki asks with a smile.

Yachi laughs and snorts a little. “Me? In a sports club? No way, gym class is enough for me. I’d make a fool of myself if I tried out for one. I know I said I wanted to try something new, but it has to be realistic as well.” She eyes the clock at the back of the class, one minute to go before the teacher arrives so she starts to put away her extra curricular headache and dig out her notebook from her bag.

Well, the history class notebook at least. Last week she’d been reunited with her missing items, and her favourite purple one was sitting snugly in her bag for later when she wanted to doodle.

“What about bein’ a manager then?” Riseki asks, and Yachi pauses with one hand in her bag. “Sorry, I know yer havin’ a hard time narrowin’ yer options, but ya want to consider them, all right?”

“A manager?” She repeats, the word suddenly swimming around in her mind like a happy fish.

“Yeah, ya know a member of the team who supports them from the sidelines but doesn’t play. Ya don’t need any athletic ability for it either.”

Yachi hums and bites her lip. “B-But I don’t even know the rules of most sports a-and that seems pretty important.”

Riseki shrugs and starts to get his own class books out. “Don’t worry, it was only a suggestion. I just thought you’d be really good at it ‘cause yer so organised all the time. Well, that and my team doesn’t have a manager right now either.”

“Eh! Y-You’re on one of these super impressive teams?” To be honest it made sense given his height and the way he never seemed out of breath when he ran into class late — which happened every other day or so.

Riseki blushes and rubs the back of his head. “Well, I guess so? I only joined last week, and I don’t think I’ll even be on the bench at first. But I made it through the tryouts against some really skilled guys!”

Yachi imagines an obstacle course from hell complete with active volcanoes shooting lava into the sky and a tyrannical demon with a whistle on his neck laughs and orders his first year victims to run for their lives.

Hopefully it wasn’t quite that bad.

“Wow, well done.” She swivels in her seat to face him properly. “You must have practiced a lot to make it.”

“I played in middle school, so it wasn’t like I didn’t have any experiences or anythin’, that would have been a nightmare. Besides, I’ve always enjoyed playin’ volleyball.”

Yachi blinks and tries to recall any knowledge she has about volleyball. The teacher enters and the conversation is dropped, but half of her mind remains fixed on it while the other half learns about medieval Japanese wars for territory.

Volleyball, huh? She’s played it a few times in middle school for gym class, but that was it. The rules had seemed pretty complicated, and she’d gotten hit in the face enough times to make her nose crinkle at the memory.

It couldn’t hurt to check it out in the handbook, right? 

* * *

Wrong.

Apparently, the volleyball club was one of the most successful of the school’s sports team. Consistently making it to the national stage and placing well. One of their current members was also the best player in his position — the setti? Or something — in all of Japan. Yachi didn’t really mingle with people like that, and the very thought of it caused her to break out in a sweat.

This was a terrible idea. Why was she even contemplating it?

“You’re still looking through the extra curricular activities?” Her mother’s voice cuts through her thoughts, and she looks behind to see her mother by the bedroom door. “You need to make up your mind soon or you’ll risk missing the application window.”

Yachi looks down at her list, she’s managed to cross off one or two options, but it is still far too long. “I think...I think I’m struggling with all the choices. I don’t know what I’ll be g-good at.”

“Does it matter?” Her mother’s question causes Yachi to blink and turn fully in her chair to face her. “Of course you won’t know if you’re good at something you haven’t tried before. What matters is that you try and give it your effort.”

The handbook is open on the photo of the boy’s volleyball team. A group of boys in smart black and white uniforms posing seriously for the camera. They were only a year or two older than her, but even through the photo, they had a presence that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand to attention. Exactly the kind of people she usually avoided. 

“W-What if I screw up?” She asks — unsaid was ‘and then they hunt me down and hang me in a cage from the entrance for disgracing the school like some warning for future first years’.

Her mother walks towards the desk and shrugs, even after a full day at work she looked beautiful. Yachi could only recall a couple of times when she’d seen her truly freak out about something.

“Then you screw up, you learn and get better and keep trying. That’s how life works and one setback shouldn’t dissuade you. Moving on and accepting failure is vital to growing stronger.” Yachi nervously picks at the corner of the handbook, failure was scary. Imagining it made a void appear in her stomach that sucked in every good feeling like a black hole pulling in the very light from the stars.

But…

_ A fresh start, a chance to try something new. _

“Though I think you might be out of luck applying to a boy’s sports team.” Her mother says, peering over her shoulder at the photo. 

“Oh! No, I wasn’t...one of my classmates said that they didn’t have a manager and I-I guess I was considering it.” She could admit that part of it was because Riseki had suggested it and she hated to disappoint people, even if he’d only meant it as a casual suggestion. The fact that she would actually know someone on the team was a big draw as well.

“Hmm, it sounds like they’re pretty good.” 

“Yeah.” No place for someone average like her. “B-But it was just a suggestion. Not even on my list see.” And she held up the increasingly busy page of her notebook. 

Her mother narrows her eyes slightly and looks between the list and the handbook. “But you’ve still been thinking about it?”

Repeatedly. For most of the day since Riseki brought up the idea in morning period. At first it had only been funny, a joke to think that someone like her could become a manager of a volleyball club, exactly the opposite of what she had planned to do. But the more time passed the less funny it seemed, instead it grew thick oak-tree-like roots that burrowed into her brain that she couldn’t prune away.

As loud as the doubts and nervousness yelled in her head, they couldn’t quite drown out the little voice that whispered  _ what if _ in the back of her mind. Sure, it was something she had never considered before, but that’s what she had been looking for, right? What made it different from any of her other options? Like Riseki said, she didn’t actually need to play the sport, and she liked to think that she had a knack for organising things. 

That little voice still hasn’t died by the evening as she stares down at the handbook on her desk with her mother by her side.

“Yes,” she admits with a long exhale, like she was releasing a closely guarded secret along with her breath. “O-One of the boys is in my class and he seems nice.”

“You shouldn’t join for a crush, that’s bound to end badly.”

Wait.

What?!

Yachi feels her cheeks burn with embarrassment and immediately crosses her arms in protest, as if she’s trying to ward off an evil spirit.

“N-No! I-It’s nothing like that I swear!.” The idea was ludicrous, she had barely settled into her new routine and there was no time to like someone...like that! “We’re just friends...or at least I think we could be.”

Her mother’s eyes soften, and she smiles at Yachi. “That’s good. I can’t tell you what to do, Hitoka, but trying something outside of your comfort zone might not be the worst idea.”

There were times when Yachi worried that she was a disappointment to her mother, being so shy and nervous with an imagination that ran wild at the slightest provocation, but she never doubted that she had her love. Her mother may not have been the softest person, but she supported Yachi in the ways that mattered and she can feel some of her worries….well, not disappear but at least ease slightly.

“Maybe,” she hedges, unwilling to make a greater commitment. “I think I need to sleep on it.” She closes the handbook that is starting to haunt her dreams and the notebook with the cursed list. 

If only it was so easy to put a pause on the idea tree flourishing into a forest in her head.

As she gets ready for bed, she brings up a video on her computer. It’s the first result that came up when she typed in volleyball match and with a deep sigh — she’s actually doing research on this, it’s only a brief look but it’s telling that she hasn’t done this for any of her other choices — hits play.

As the ball goes up then down, back and forth with a speed that makes her shiver, she tries to match the footage on the screen with her own limited experience of the sport. Some of those hits look like they could take someone’s arm off, and it’s hard not to flinch at every  _ WHAM _ of the ball.

People do this for fun?

Suddenly feeling guilty as though she’s opened a door to some secret world she had no business entering, she closes the video and tries to sleep.

Her eyes close to her mother’s words and the  _ WHAM _ of a ball hitting the floor.

_ What matters is that you try and give your effort. _

* * *

“Eh? The volleyball team? I thought you weren’t interested in that sort of thing?” Tobe looks a little shocked, and Yachi’s a little worried she’s going to walk into someone if she keeps staring at her like that. She doesn’t want to be accidentally responsible for injuring one of the student council members, what if the others take that as a declaration of war?

“O-one of the new members is in my class, and h-he said they needed a manager.” Tobe snorts at that, somehow still managing to look pretty while doing so.

“Yes, they certainly do. I don’t think they’ve had one for four or five years now. Some say the position is cursed.” 

If Yachi wasn’t so wound up about the idea she was giving way too much consideration to, she may have picked up on the laughing note in Tobe’s voice when she said this. Unfortunately, she was wound up and thus missed it completely.

“Cursed?” She squeaks, immediately imagining the ghosts of former managers haunting her for the rest of her time in high school or a constant stream of bad luck. 

Tobe takes a look at her face and starts to backtrack. “I’m joking, no curse I promise. At least not the type you’re thinking of.” She rests her chin on her hand and looks up to the sky. “I don’t know if it’s because they found it too much or if they were asked to leave but no one who applied to it before ever lasted more than a week. I think this time the coach refused some applicants straight out but I don’t know why.”

“Oh,” Yachi says weakly. If the coach has rejected everyone else, why would she be any different.

Tobe pats her on the shoulder. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to discourage you. If you want to go for it, then I say go for it. You never know, you might be the perfect fit for that rowdy team.”

_ Oh dear. _

“R-Rowdy?”

“Uh-huh, they’re definitely a strong team and pretty popular, but there’s been more than one video about the Miya twins fighting, and they tend to butt heads with some of the other boy’s teams as well. They can be quite loud too.”

Yachi feels any confidence shrivel up and wither faster than a bullet train. Riseki hadn’t mentioned anything about this.

“But they’re not delinquents or anything. None of them have ever gotten in serious trouble, and I think the captain this year is quite a calm-headed guy. He’s in the class next to mine and he’s apparently a model student.” 

While Yachi appreciates the information, the damage has already been done as she pictures herself in the middle of a circle of tall shadowy figures with grins full of pointy teeth. She waves goodbye to Tobe and heads to class, her mind whirling with this new unwelcome information.

The morning period passes quickly. She doesn’t bring out her list again, and Riseki is drawn into conversation with another group of boys in the classroom, so she doesn’t want to disturb him. The bell rings for lunch, and she rises from her seat on autopilot and walks towards the cafeteria. She has leftovers today, but she buys a carton of orange juice from the vending machine and punches the straw in.

Her mind wanders back and forth between the seemingly unpassable obstacles of the coach’s likely rejection and what Tobe told her about the team. But maybe it’s a good thing? Maybe if she applies then gets told no this niggling little idea will get out of her head and she can turn her focus back to the much more plausible options on her list.

It wouldn’t even be a possibility anymore once she heard the ‘no’ and then she could move on. While rejection was scary, it could be good in this case.

_ I’ll apply today then! I’m sure the form isn’t that hard to com— _

“Hey, watch out!”

“—’Samu yer gonna—”

Yachi hit something. Hard. In shock she squeezes on her juice box, and suddenly all she can smell is orange as it spurts over her.

“Oof!”

She’s knocked back on to the floor and bites back a cry at the jolt of unexpected pain. Her lunch has spilled all over her and she thinks there is rice in her hair.

“Look what ya did, ya idiot!”

“It’s yer fault for distractin’ me.”

The harsh voices ring in her ears and Yachi’s eyes start to tear as she feels the eyes of everyone in the cafeteria starting at her and the mess on the floor. With a pounding heart she looks up and feels her blood freeze.

Standing over her is a very tall, very angry-looking boy with a fierce scowl on his face. His hair is dyed grey, and his uniform is covered in Yachi’s orange juice. At her movement, his eyes flick down to hers.

_ Oh no. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed chapter 2! Thank you to everyone who has left kudos and comments they are much appreciated. Yachi is really fun to write and I hope I've done her justice.
> 
> Feel free to come say hi on[ my twitter](https://twitter.com/Jen_B93) if you want and a massive thank you as usual to my beta reader [vanellabeann11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanellabeannn11/pseuds/vanellabeannn11) for all their hard work, I really appreciate all of their help!


	3. Decision

Yachi’’s had nightmares like this before where she does something embarrassing in public, and all eyes turn to her. She can feel their gazes on her skin like ants, and if she had the ability to move, she would be rubbing her arms. Judgement. Laughter. Pity. All of it focusing on her.

A brief moment of quiet as the students all turn to stare before whispers erupt, and Yachi wishes to turn deaf.

“Oh my gosh, is she okay?”

“Wow, Osamu-san looks pissed.”

“So clumsy.”

“Dude, are you filming this?”

“I think if we work together on this part of it and then you can take the section on fisheries and I’ll do the one on fruit markets.”

“Jeez, that lot is always causing trouble.”

“Look, she’s turning so red! No surprise, I’d die if I spilt my lunch on one of the Miya twins. Although that means I would be able to talk to one of them.”

It doesn’t matter what the subject is or if it’s positive or negative it’s all loud. Ringing in her ears like cathedral bells and preventing her from thinking clearly. She hasn’t looked away from the boy whose day she’s undoubtedly ruined.

He looks angry and the scowl on his face does a pretty good job of sealing her throat shut. Tall. Angry. As she looks up at him from the floor he seems to grow bigger, darker, turning into a shadow with glowing red eyes and pointy fangs that look perfect for devouring foolish little girls who cover him with their orange juice.

It’s awful and scary, and Yachi feels her chest tighten. Her mother is going to be so annoyed at her for wasting food, and everyone is going to think she’s an airheaded-clutz who doesn’t look where she’s going. This is the end of any hope for her social life. She’ll need to transfer to another school, take a new name, maybe dye her hair brown and get some contacts. It’s been done before in movies, she’s seen it.

“Hey, are ya okay?”

So busy caught up in her plans to relocate and start a new life it takes Yachi a second to see the outstretched hand in front of her. She blinks and startles back, the hand belongs to another tall boy — why are all the boys here so tall? Is there something in the water, the food, or are they just born this way? — he’s not as tall as the harbinger of her doom, it’s still enough to make her twitchy, with short sandy brown hair. He’s offering her a hand.

Ingrained manners take over, and she moves on autopilot as the rest of her mind is still frozen in shocked horror at what had just happened.

The eyes still watch.

The mouths still whisper.

Her shoulders hunch in on themselves and she fiercely wishes for the ground to swallow her whole. But she takes the boy’s hand and lets out a meep when she’s suddenly yanked to her feet. Tall and strong too. So strong that she nearly crashes forward, but a new hand on her shoulder steadies her. The touch is a surprise, and she would have jerked away if it wasn’t clasping her shoulder so firmly.

“Steady there, Gin, yer gonna send her flyin’ again.”

The boy holding her hand scowls, and Yachi flinches a little at the annoyance she sees there. “Shut up, Atsumu, it’s yer fault for pissin’ off Osamu anyway.”

Too many voices. There are three boys around her and a fourth to the side who looks like he’s holding...a phone? Is he recording this?

Fear is a powerful motivator, and it manages to cut through her mind haze. She needs to get out of here. Now.

She yanks her hand back and clutches it to her chest. The motion causes three pairs of eyes to turn to her. The third boy, the one who steadied her, looks the same as the still silent one who is glaring down at the mess on his shirt. The one Yachi put there. Are they clones? Do Inarizaki High clone people? Are they involved in genetic experiments? Is that why everyone is so tall here? 

Except one is blonde and one is grey — the aesthetic pleases her, gold and silver a matched pair — was the cloning process unsuccessful? There’s something oddly familiar about all of them. She’s sure that she’s seen them somewhere before.

“Are ya okay?” The boy who pulled her up isn’t frowning any more which is a relief. He is looking at her which is not. A tentative hand reaches out towards her but to Yachi it may as well be a grasping claw and she steps back.

She dares to look back at the one she spilt her lunch on. He’s looking at her again, some of the anger has gone but he still looks annoyed and that’s enough of a starter’s pistol that she needs.

“I-I’m s-so s-sorry.” She whispers, for running into him, for the juice, for not being able to stay and work this out like a normal person, but the eyes and the whispers bite into her soul. Her eyes feel wet and the telltale breathlessness that means a good cry session is coming means she has to leave. Grey eyes widen a little and he opens his mouth, but Yachi doesn’t stick around to find out what he’s going to say.

Yachi runs.

Tears blur her vision but she can still make out the set of double doors that signify freedom. The bu-bump of her heart in her ears blocks out the shouts of ‘Wait!’ from behind her and the whispers that grow louder.

Her shirt is sticky. The smell of orange is stuck in her nose. The warmth of her tears sting her cheeks, and she hiccups out a sob as the doors swing shut behind her.

What an awful day.

She cleans up in the bathroom and changes into her gym shirt for the afternoon. The rest of the day passes in a haze and she keeps her head down. Every murmur or look feels like a dagger, and she waits for someone to confront her about the humiliating scene in the cafeteria.

“Do ya need to go to the nurse? Yer lookin’ really pale,” Riseki asks when he sees her. Yachi drops her shoulders and wonders if someone has invented the time machine yet. Probably not, and if so she wouldn’t be the first person on the list to use it/

“I-It’s nothing,” she says, and really it isn’t. It  _ shouldn’t _ be anything, an unfortunate incident that she could have calmly apologised for and offered to make amends. Instead, she had fled like a guilty criminal from the scene of the crime. “Something embarrassing happened at lunch. I made a fool of myself.” She hopes that’s enough to end the conversion and turns her attention back to the teacher. Sure, it’s not the most interesting lecture she’s ever sat through, but it’s better than reliving that moment again and again in her head like some sadistic video recorder.

Riseki looks unconvinced, but a sudden question catches him off guard and he stammers out an answer. Yachi sighs and glances down at the scrap of paper tucked into her notebook. Black loopy writing, that’s clearly been scrawled in a rush, looks back up at her and there’s something taunting about it. It was the office number for the coach of the volleyball team, Kurosu Norimune, and she’d entertained the idea of visiting him today to apply.

Now the idea seems laughable. This is a terrible day for her to try anything, and she should keep her head down until she can escape back home.

“Hey,” Riseki whispers, and Yachi jolts upright. She glances behind her to see him smiling at her. “I’m sure it wasn’t too bad. And students here do stupid things all the time, betcha by tomorrow two other people will have done somethin’ embarrassin’.” He shrugs and sits back in his seat. “It’s a big school, Yachi-chan.”

The words make sense. Yachi lets out a breath and drops her head down. It was almost laughable, how easy it was for those words to calm her down enough for reality to reassert itself. She nods and manages a shaky smile.

“T-Thanks, Riseki-kun. I’ll try to remember that.” She should also think about trying to find the boy she ran into. While her stomach rebels at the thought, she wouldn’t feel at peace until she’s actually managed to apologise to him properly. 

“No problem,” Riseki says before looking down at her desk. “No list today? Didya make a decision then?”

It’s an innocent question, but Yachi still blushes and looks back at her notes. What will he think if she tells him that she’s going to apply to the team? Will he think it’s weird? Did he only suggest it as a joke? What if the position is now already filled and he has to let her down in an awkwardly sweet way?

_ Breathe _

“Sort of. I-I’m going to apply to something tomorrow, but I don’t think it’s going to work. I’ll be working through my list again after that.” Working on the list recently has been impossible as the idea of ‘volleyball team manager’ has inserted itself to the forefront of her mind when she looks at it. That and her mother’s words which ring in her head on repeat.

“Oh? Well, good luck anyway, I’m sure you’ll get it.”

The teacher calls for attention and they both go quiet, but Yachi leaves school that day feeling a lot better than before. If the rest of the guys on the team are as nice as Riseki, maybe it won’t be so bad.

A tall door looms in front of her. Intimidating. Invincible. Another obstacle that threatens to send Yachi running for the hills.

She looks left and right down the hallway. Empty, which is a relief. Coach Kurosu’s office is in one of the less busy sections of the schools. Most people here seem to be staff members, and she only passed one or two students on the way here. The ribbon around her neck feels tighter than when she put it on this morning, and she’s gripping the material of her skirt so tightly her fingers are turning white.

Today has been fine. No one has approached her about the incident yesterday, and Riseki was right about the spotlight shifting focus. The gossip this morning was all about some third year getting detention for scaling one of the gyms — yes,  _ one _ of the gyms. Because of course this place has multiple gyms — and she’s extremely grateful to the mystery climber.

Knock.

All she has to do is knock and speak to the coach. She’s spoken to teachers before. They’re nice, they’re people, the coach isn’t going to be unreasonable. Tobe’s words from yesterday dampen her spirits, but if she doesn’t do this, then there’s no way of getting this idea out of her head and moving on.

Her hand feels like it’s made of steel, but she raises it and knocks twice on the door. A slight pause. 

“Come in.” A clear voice calls out from inside instantly derailing Yachi’s idea to flee — she doesn’t think she has a fight or flight instinct, she has a flight or flight one instead — and she opens the door and pokes her head inside.

It’s a very neat office. Everything has a clear place and the only mess is on the desk where piles of papers are strewn about. She can see diagrams of a court and a lot of hastily scribbled notes. The man behind the desk is frowning at a notebook in his hand. He looks stern and exudes authority. He looks up to see her and she bites back a meep. Her spine straightens instinctively and she steps inside.

“Can I help ya miss?” He asks, and Yachi nods. She swallows once and fortifies herself for the inevitable rejection before stepping inside.

The walk from the door to the desk feels like it stretches on to infinity, an unsuccessful expedition which ends in the whole crew disappearing mysteriously and powering conspiracy theories for years to come, but when she blinks she’s there in front of the coach. He’s watching her with a slightly confused look clearly waiting for her to speak and she takes a deep breath.

Now or never.

“I-I-I’dliketoapplytobethevolleyballteammanagerplease!”

There she’s done it!

“I’m sorry I didn’t quite catch that. Maybe my age is finally catching up with me, could ya please repeat that?” He gives her a small smile and sets the notebook in his hand down on the desk. Yachi gets a glimpse of numbers and arrows when she drops her eyes to the floor.

“I-I—”

She’s said it once she can say it again. Her cheeks start to warm, and she forces herself to let go of her skirt. A fresh start. A chance to try something new. That’s why she’s here, to make a change.

“I would like to apply to be the volleyball team manager please.” Yachi says lifting her head to meet the coach’s eyes.

His eyebrows raise but he doesn’t immediately cast her out into the hall which is nice. “I see,” he says and looks her up and down. “Why don’t ya have a seat then and we can discuss yer application?” He gestures to a chair, and she nearly collapses into it as her legs turn to jelly. 

A couple of seconds pass as he looks for something on his desk, digging through the various papers and grabbing a pen from a pot. She takes the time to look around the office more. Several photographs hang on the back wall, previous teams from the look of them, as well as one or two awards and a bookcase that’s full of thick heavy tomes with intimidating titles that she doesn’t fully understand.

“Alright then, first things first can ya please tell me yer name?”

“Oh, I-I’m Yachi Hitoka from class 1-5.”

“Nice to meet ya Yachi, now where did ya learn of the position? It’s not one that’s been heavily advertised.” Yachi returns her attention to the coach and tries to remember all the stories her mother has told her about interviewing people.

_ Keep your answers relevant and coherent. Don’t go off on tangents and answer what is being asked. Examples are your best friend, but don’t spin a story. Maintain eye contact with whoever is speaking to you. _

_ Even if it’s a lie, think how lucky they would be to have you working for them. _

“One of my classmates is on the team, Riseki-kun, he suggested I apply. He said the team didn’t have a manager and thought I might be good at it.” Privately she thinks Riseki would have said that to anyone as he’s very nice, but she doesn’t say that.

“I see, and do ya have any previous experience of being a team manager? It can be quite a demanding job, especially for someone on their own.”

It’s a fair question, and Yachi bites her lip. Not even the most generous interpretation of her middle school life could provide her with managerial experience. 

_ Sell yourself but don’t lie outright. You will be found out eventually. _

“W-Well,” she stutters and then stops, takes another breath and starts again. “Truthfully, I’ve never been a sports team manager before. But I like to think I’m good at organisation and taking in new information. And I always put a lot of effort into my work.” That’s always a plus, right?

The coach sets down the pen he’s been writing with and clasps his hands together in front of his face. He stares at her from behind thick glasses and there’s an odd quirk to his mouth that Yachi doesn’t know the significance of.

“So to be clear, ya have no previous experience as a manager but want to apply for the position for one of the top teams in the prefecture.” There’s no derision in his voice, he’s not sneering at her. It’s a calm statement of facts that does a splendid job of shattering what is left of her confidence.

She hunches forward and drops her eyes again. It stung more than she thought it would and she nods shakily.

“I see.” From the corner of her eye she can see the coach lean forward on his desk. “Why did ya want to apply for this position, Yachi-san?”

_ Because I wanted to try something new. _

_ Because I didn’t want things to stay the same. _

_ Because for some reason this idea wouldn’t get out of my head even though it completely terrifies. _

_ Because I wanted to do it even though I knew you’d say no. _

So many answers and Yachi stays quiet as she searches for the right one. It won’t matter anyway, there’s no way she’s getting the position now. She thinks of the few videos she’d watched of professional volleyball matches, the  _ WHAM _ of the ball echoing in her ears for hours afterwards and also the celebrations; the joy on the athletes’ faces as they scored and cheered for one another.

It looked scary but fun too.

“T-To be honest, I’m not really sure. Riseki-kun gave me the idea, and it kind of got stuck in my head. I don’t know anything about volleyball or what the rules are, and like I said I-I don’t have any experience with this sort of thing.”

_ But. _

  
  


Yachi looks back up to meet the Kurosu’s gaze.

“But...I-I wanted to apply anyway. Because it looked interesting, and because I wanted to push myself, I guess. Now’s the time to try something new I told myself.” She smiles. “But I’m sorry if I wasted your time.”

The coach looks at her unblinkingly, and she resists the urge to wiggle nervously. Eventually he lets out a huff of laughter and sets his arms on the desk.

“I wouldn’t say this has been a waste of time. As a teacher, I’m always happy when students seek to improve themselves or try new things.” He opens a draw and brings out a stack of forms. “While yer lack of experience is worrisome, it’s hardly an insurmountable barrier. Everyone starts knowing nothing before they learn.”

A piece of paper is set in front of Yachi, a basic form asking for her name, class, age and she looks at it briefly before snapping her gaze back to the coach. Does this mean what she thinks it means?

Hope is a cruel and terrible thing, but it roars to life in her chest. The path she had thought blocked forever opening once more.

Coach Kurosu smiles kindly at her. “Why don’t we take ya on as a probation manager for now? We’ll see how well ya fit with the team, give ya time to learn, and if it doesn’t work, we can part ways with no hard feelings. And if ya decide it’s not for you, you’re welcome to leave at any time. How does that sound?”

Yachi stares at him in shock. This….this was not an option she had considered, and it throws her completely. She’d come here expecting rejection and instead been offered a lifeline.

It will be tough. She already knows this.

No fellow manager to help her or to learn from.

She needs to learn about not only the sport, but what her duties will require of her.

It’s a top team, and weakness won’t be looked kindly upon.

_ But. _

She smiles widely and nods. “That sounds good.”

“Excellent, are you free to come to practice after school today? I can introduce you to the team, and you can get an up close look at what we do.”

Fear spikes up but is pushed down by giddy relief.

“I-I can do that,” she says, already making plans to call her mother to let her know she’ll be late today.

“Then welcome to the team, Yachi-san.”

_ Oh gosh what has she done?! _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I hope everyone had a happy holiday and looking forward to a brighter 2021. Thank you to everyone who has left a kudos or a comment it means so much and I hope you enjoyed chapter 3. 
> 
> Feel free to come say hi on[ my twitter](https://twitter.com/Jen_B93) if you want, I post snippets from my WIP's and sometimes cool graphics to go with my fics as well! As usual a massive thank you as usual to my beta reader [vanellabean11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanellabean11/pseuds/vanellabean11) for all their hard work, they've been super busy so I really appreciate all of their help!


	4. First Practice

The rest of the afternoon passes in a haze, Yachi’s body moves automatically from classroom to classroom and takes notes while her mind spirals into a whirlwind of activity. Thankfully, she isn’t called upon to answer any questions, and no one calls her out on being too quiet as she’s such a wallflower anyway. Yep, a quiet serene little wallflower whose inner thoughts are a mix of constant screaming, fear for what’s going to happen, worst case scenarios and nerves.

Only this time there’s something new amidst all the chaos and panic, it flares up whenever she starts to talk herself out of going to the practice after school and reminds her that hey she did it. She put herself forward and wasn’t immediately rejected. That had to mean something, right? Coach Kuroso would have told her no like every other applicant if he had thought she couldn’t do it, so maybe she has more potential than she thinks? 

Part of her still frets over why those other students were turned away, but she pushes that aside for now in an effort to try and be positive. The rejection she had not-so-secretly feared hadn’t happened, but now she was faced with the reality of actually going through with the wild idea and all the reasons why it was a wild idea — for her at least — were rearing up in her head and threatening to trample her like a stampede of upset wildebeest. 

Her mom had sounded a little surprised on the phone but had wished her look and reminded her to put all her effort into whatever she would be asked to do. They’d have a later dinner tonight, and she expected to hear all about Yachi’s first day on probation. That last part had caused Yachi’s stomach to squirm, while she appreciated the new closeness between her and her mother, the extra attention brought its own issues.

She’s so wrapped up in her own thoughts that it’s only after the bell rings that she realises that she has no idea where to go. She looks around for Riseki, but he’s already left the room and she hasn't yet told him about the probation offer.

Her classmates start to leave, and Yachi digs into her bag for the map of the school. There are a lot of sports facilities around but heading to the gym should be a good start. Maybe she can find someone to point her in the right direction, the boy’s volleyball team was supposedly pretty famous, after all.

It takes ten minutes of wandering around for a harsher type of nervousness to set it.

_ I can’t be late. I can’t be late. I can’t be late. _

_ Not on the first day. _

The hallways all look the same and seem to stretch on forever and the gyms seem to grow bigger, looming imposingly over her like mountains threatening to crash over an unprepared explorer. But like undiscovered mountains there’s the promise of something new and exceptional within if she can only find the courage to take the first step....and find the right door.

Not that poetic similes are going to do her any good right now as she concedes how hopelessly lost she is. Had she passed that door before? She’s pretty sure that she’s walked over that cracked floor tile three times now and she’s definitely been past the school’s swimming pool at least once.

The mere fact that she’s at a school with its own  _ swimming pool  _ is enough to make her head spin. Yachi is just about to turn around and try and find the coach’s office again when a voice calls out to her.

“Excuse me miss, are ya lost?” Yachi can’t help the little yelp as she jumps forward. Spinning around she comes face to chest — another tall boy her inner voice wails — with another student, judging from the uniform he’s wearing. 

_ Unless he’s a secret agent sent to infiltrate the school for secrets or there’s a secret evil plot that the government wants to stop or… _

She really needs to cut back on her movie intake.

The boy in front of her waits patiently for her answer. He has neat grey hair that ends in black and brown eyes that give nothing away apart from a steady calmness. He’s also clearly older than her with a confidence that none of the new first years have yet displayed since term began. Remembering her manners she gives a short bow and does her best to push down her nerves again.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t see you there.” She apologises and clasps her hands together. “I-I’m a new student and I’m still l-learning where everything is.”

“That’s quite alright and perfectly understandable, it’s a big school, after all.” The boy — her senpai she supposes — offers her a small smile and says, “I happen to know this part pretty well, where were ya trying to go? I can show ya.”

“A-Are you sure? I’d hate to take up any of your time if y-you have somewhere else to be,” Yachi frets, if he’s here after school that must mean he has an extracurricular club to get to and she’d hate to cause him to be late due to her own foolishness.

“I’m sure and it’s no trouble at all. I’m Kita Shinsuke. it’s nice to meet ya,” her hero, Kita, says and Yachi can hear the bells of salvation ringing. A lucky break! Not an axe murderer or an alien — the secret agent option was still plausible there was a cool aura around him that didn’t seem like it could belong to a mere student — just a helpful student who knew how to navigate the labyrinth she’d found herself in.

“I’m Yachi Hitoka. I-It’s nice to meet you too, Kita-senpai.” She takes a deep breath and steadies herself before looking up to meet his gaze. “Do you know where the boy’s volleyball team practices? I was supposed to head there after class but g-got a little lost.” She says with a self deprecating laugh.

A second passes. Kita blinks at her, and it hits Yachi exactly how odd that sounds without any context.

“T-The coach invited me! I wouldn’t just turn up like that to watch, that would be weird! I promise I’m a student here and not a spy or a weirdo, I’m meant to be there.” She babbles and starts to wave her hands around in a vain attempt at communicating that she isn’t trying to sneak into a gym to watch a team practice when she shouldn’t.

Oh no, what if Kita thinks that is what she’s trying to do and abandons her here in the neverending hallways of doom and countless doors? She doesn’t want to die here!

“I’m sure you are, Yachi-san. I was just...a little surprised is all. But yes, I know where that team practices and will be happy to show ya.” His smile grows a little bigger and Yachi nearly weeps in relief.

Kita starts to lead her through the maze, and they chat along the way. It helps to distract Yachi from the fact that she was going in completely the wrong direction and would most certainly have spent fifteen years of her life looking for the exit. She learns that Kita is a third year, and while part of her shrieks at the thought of talking so casually with an older student, it’s hard to feel nervous about someone who is so calm and collected.

They turn a corridor, and Yachi blinks when she sees coach Kuroso and another man talking with one another beside a set of double doors. They turn to look at her and Kita, and she freezes in her tracks at the attention.

“Ah, Yachi-san, I see ya found your way. This is my assistant coach Oomi-sensei, and we’ll both be happy to answer any of yer questions. Apologies for not providing ya with any directions, I thought you’d be arriving with Riseki-kun.”

Yachi laughs nervously, she really should have.

“And it seems my mistake hasn’t caused ya any problems, and you’ve met Kita our captain.”

Wait. What? Yachi turns to look at her companion with wide eyes, Kita was the captain? The captain of the oh-so-impressive volleyball team she was about to meet. The very same person who’d found her wandering the halls like an incapable baby?

_ I must have made a terrible first impression! _

Oblivious to Yachi’s inner panic, the coach turns to Kita. “And Kita, this is Yachi Hitoka, she’s joining us as our probationary manager for this year. She’ll be observing today’s practice, and I’ll introduce her to the rest of the team.”

Kita’s eyebrows rise slightly. “I see.” He turns to Yachi and offers a short bow. “Welcome to the team, Yachi-chan. I hope that you enjoy your team with us, and please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any problems.”

_ Problems? He’s already mentioning problems! He must think I'm going to screw something up already, which is no wonder considering how he found me. I’m going to need to work hard to prove that I can do this job....which hopefully I can. _

“T-Thank you, Kita-san. I-I’m sure I’ll like it, and sorry for causing you any trouble.”

She hopes that she can make a better first impression on the rest of the team.

* * *

It takes her a few minutes to change into her school tracksuit — it’s a little too big for her, but her mother has assured her that she’ll grow into it — and hurries back to meet with coach Oomi. He gives her a tour of the facilities, and she tries to ignore the growing sound of people in the gym. The team has started to arrive, and she’s going to meet them soon. Why hadn’t she said anything to Riseki before now? Maybe he could have given her some tips on how to introduce herself to the team.

“This is the store room, some of this stuff can be pretty heavy, so if you ever need help getting anything just ask one of the boys to come with you.” Coach Oomi chuckles. “They’ve got big personalities and can be a little loud, but they’re all good kids.”

Yachi nods. After hearing so much about the team it’s been a little difficult to predict what they’re going to be like, and it’s always better to form your own impressions. What if they’re a group of terribly misunderstood boys who have been the victims of terrible slander and a school press seeking to destroy them? On the other hand, what if they were the worst of the worst and were all secret delinquents disguising themselves as sportsmen? 

To meet them expecting either of those two options feels terribly small-minded, and she really should give them the benefit of the doubt.

Besides the two boys on the team that she’s met already have been nothing but nice and polite to her, so that’s a point in their favour.

“Anyway, I think it’s about time that you meet them. They might look a little scary, but I promise they don’t bite.”

The attempt at reassurance is appreciated but not effective, and Yachi is only able to manage a shaky grin in response. 

_ Okay. Here we go. Absolutely no chance to turn and run now. You’re going to step through those doors and say hello to your new...acquaintances? Is that the right word? It’s close enough, it’ll do.  _

The doors open, and Yachi steps inside the gym. It’s quite a big space, and she can see that nets and two carts of balls have already been brought out for practice. Coach Kurosu is standing in front of a group of boys dressed in gym clothes — it becomes instantly clear that she’s the shortest person in the room — and a couple of them look over in her direction when she enters.

Her gaze drops to the floor at the attention, and her heart pounds loudly in her ears. Even with the thumping she’s still able to hear the last part of the coach’s speech.

“...and one final announcement before we begin. I’m pleased to welcome Yachi Hitoka to the team as our new manager.” The team immediately begins to whisper.

“Wait what? I thought they’d stopped accepting applications after the last one?”

“Is she okay? She looks like she’s about ta faint?”

“Whoa, she’s kinda cute dontcha think?”

“Stop starin’ at her idiot.”

Yachi’s shoulders hunch up. She hates hearing people talk about her, especially when it feels like she’s not even there in the room. Coach Kurosu claps his hands once to quieten them down.

“I expect ya to treat her with respect and make her feel welcome. She’s a little new to volleyball and will be with us for a probationary period. Should she decide to stay on, and fits well with the team, she’ll be our official manager.” He turns to her with a smile and beckons her forward. “Please introduce yerself, Yachi-san.”

Okay. She can do this. She steps up beside the coach and bows, her hands gripping tightly to the material of her tracksuit trousers. “

“H-Hello, I’m Yachi Hitoka from class 1-5. I-It’s nice to meet you, and I look forward to working together,” she says and straightens back up to her full, less than impressive, height finally giving herself time to look over the group in front of her.

Riseki is easy to spot, he looks shocked but pleased if the grin on his face is any indication. In fact most of them look a little shocked at her appearance apart from Kita who returns her bow with one of his own. This seems to snap the rest of them out of it, and they hurriedly follow his lead.

“Welcome.” They all chorus as one. Yachi continues to look over them. Are these guys really high schoolers? They all look so big and strong, it’s a little hard to believe that they’re all either the same age or only a year or two older than her. There’s a tall, dark-skinned boy who keeps shooting glance at Kita and another one with brown slightly combed-down hair who looks bored more than anything else and…

Wait. He looks familiar. Where has she—

Her blood turns to ice as she spots the boy who offered her a hand when she was knocked over in the cafeteria a few days ago.

_ Oh no. _

“Hey look ‘Samu, ya might get the chance to actually apologise for bein’ a clumsy scrub.” Blonde hair. A smug smirk and calculating, judging eyes. “Try not ta scare her away this time.”

“Shut up, idiot. Why are ya bringing this up now?” A short, sharp punch to the side and a yelp. Silver hair, a downturned mouth and a cold slightly annoyed expression.

Two pairs of identical eyes turn to her, and it takes everything she has not to shriek. The boy she knocked into and splattered with orange juice and his clone are members of the volleyball team. The blonde one even gives her a little wave while the other only scowls harder.

He looks annoyed.

_ Of course he is. The weirdo who spilled her lunch and drink all over him and then fled the scene of the crime has reappeared. _

So much for making a good first impression.

* * *

Yachi spends most of practice stuck to coach Oomi’s side, watching the team run drills, practice skills and towards the end paring off into two smaller groups for a mock match. When the coach is needed to help out, she plasters herself to the wall and tries to be as unnoticeable as possible. 

There’s so much going on it makes her head spin; balls are flying everywhere and the air resounds with the harsh WHAM of them being hit to the floor with enough power to make her flinch and callouts from the team that she only partly understands.

“Nice kill.”

“Out!”

“It’s a service ace.”

“Nice receive.”

“Hey! I know ya can jump higher than that, Suna, stop slackin’.”

It’s hard for her to focus on one group in particular, but there are plenty of moments which catch her attention: the silhouette of one of the older boys going for a hit — she’s ninety percent sure it’s called a spike — leaping higher than she thought possible and slamming the ball down. She’s sure it’s going to hit the floor, but suddenly another boy is there leaping forward with his arms outstretched and sending the ball right back into the air.

A breath escapes her and she finds herself following the ball, wondering what’s going to happen next. The speed of the ball means it goes back over the net.

“Chance ball!” The blonde boy runs forward and reaches up to throw the ball — it’s not really a throw, it’s more careful than that, more calculated, more skillful than a simple throw but she doesn’t know what else to call it — and sends it towards his clone.

_ WHAM! _

It’s over in a second, and Yachi is torn between the urge to clap and the urge to remain as quiet as possible. She must have made some noise because the two of them look in her direction. 

“Meep.” She tenses up, not sure what to say. They look like they’re going to call out to her when Kita says something that has them tensing up and turning away sheepishly.

She really should start learning their names. Coach Kurosu had provided her with a cheat-sheet of sorts with the player’s name and positions listed along with a photo. When she’s not busy trying to take everything in and avoid the balls that occasionally fly in her direction — always accompanied with a sorry from the player and sometimes another one whacking them on the back — she does her best to put names to faces.

Kita — the navigator of the labyrinth — is easy to recognise, and there’s something a little hypnotic about how he plays. It’s steady, calm and less flashy than some of the other boys, but she gets the feeling it would be very noticeable if he wasn’t there on the court.

Ojiro Aran is another one she can place within a few minutes. He’s got an incredible presence, reliable and powerful, but she mainly notices him for the way he tries to keep the others in line. It seems slightly futile, but after a few minutes, she can see how much the others respect him.

Unfortunately, it’s also easy for her to place the four boys from the cafeteria incident as well, as their images are seared into her brain for all eternity. Ginjima Hitoshi, Suna Rintaro and the Miya brothers — not clones and she needs to stop thinking that — Osamu and Atsumu.

She’s thankful for their different hair colours because it means when Miya Osamu approaches her during a water break she’s able to know which one is going to cause her doom with one simple sentence.

“Hey, Yachi-chan, right? Are ya free to talk?”

_ Help. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a good holiday :) I hope you enjoyed the newest chapter. Thank you to everyone who has left a kudos or comment they mean so much to me and really help motivate me to carry on.
> 
> Feel free to come say hello on[ my twitter](https://twitter.com/Jen_B93) if you want, I post snippets from my WIP's and sometimes cool graphics to go with my fics as well! As usual a massive thank you to my beta reader [vanellabean11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanellabean11/pseuds/vanellabean11) for all their hard work.


	5. Learning

“Hey, Yachi-chan, right? Are ya free to talk?”

Yachi’s brain goes into full panic mode: red flashing lights, sirens wailing, and a big screen with the word ABORT written in yellow letters. Is he here for vengeance? Was her humiliation not enough? Had she besmirched his honour and now he was going to restore it by making her plead for her life? Images of the half a dozen samurai films she’s seen flick through her head in rapid succession, Osamu’s image imposed over the sword-wielding hero and her own over the villain begging for mercy.

There’s no clear escape route. She will just have to accept her fate.

“Uh, I guess not?”

Yachi blinks, and the world snaps back into place. She shakes her head and tightens her grip on the water bottle. 

“N-No, I’m free t-to talk,” she stutters, hating the shakiness in her voice and the fact that she can feel the other boys looking over at them. This was exactly the sort of thing that she was worried about.

“Okay.” Yachi forces her attention back to the boy in front of her, goodness he really is tall isn’t he, and tries to calm her nerves. At the very least, she doesn’t think he’d try anything in such a public space. Both coaches are here, and even after observing half a practice, she can tell Kita has good control over her team.

The image of Kita holding a dozen leads attached to baby foxes manifests in her mind before she can help herself, and it enables her to offer a small smile to Osamu. Oddly, he glances away when she does that — oh god is her smile that creepy? — and taps his fingers against the sides of the ball he’s holding. She’s seen him smash that into the floor not ten minutes ago, so it’s a little nerve-wracking that he’s brought one with him to speak to her, like a canon that’s been fully loaded and aimed in your direction.

“I wanted ta apologise for bumpin’ in ta ya. I was distracted and didn’t see ya but that’s not really....anyway I’m sorry,” he says, and his eyes flick briefly down to meet her own wide ones before looking away again.

A beat of silence.

“Eh?”

Yachi thinks she hears someone snort, but that’s not important. She’s completely thrown off guard as her mind struggles to rapidly meld reality with her own expectations of what was going to happen. Luckily, her overwhelming need to be polite and not cause conflict kicks in, and she practically jumps back against the wall waving her arms around with one hand still gripping a water bottle.

“No, no, no! It was my fault. I was the one who wasn’t looking where I was going and then I spilled my drink on you and—” Deep breaths like she practiced. “I’m sorry for my clumsiness, Miya-san.” She manages to get out and instantly feels a little better for finally being able to apologise for her blunder.

Osamu is staring at her as though she’s handed him a loaded bomb with a faulty timer. There are more whispers around them, and Yachi does her best not to listen.

“—the hell? Why is she—”

“—not sure. It was—”

“—looks scared—

“—back ta practice now—”

The water break is nearly over, and Yachi still has to refill the one she’s holding and the others by her feet. She bows to Osamu and makes her escape.

“Now wait a minute, ya don’t need—”

“Ah sorry, Miya-san, but I better get back to work. Enjoy the rest of practice.” And with a weak smile, and as much fake enthusiasm that she can muster, she bolts even as her mind screams at her.

_ Enjoy the rest of practice? That was the best you could think of? _

She returns to the gym a few minutes later, her task complete, and walks to stand beside coach Oomi again. He thanks her and picks up explaining the basic rules of the game. It makes Yachi’s head spin, but a few things are beginning to click into place as she watches the team train.

Spikes. Serves. Receives. Those three things she can just about wrap her head around. It’s also outstandingly clear even to an amateur like her that these boys are good at volleyball. Yes she’d read about their achievements, but reading it and seeing it in person were very different. The second and third years in particular move with confidence and strength, unafraid of making a mistake and working together like bees in a hive. The first years stand out because of it, still new and finding their feet amongst the experienced upperclassmen, but they keep up which is impressive enough.

_ This team is strong. _

Yachi chances a look to where the two Miya brothers are playing. Atsumu  throws sets the ball to Osamu who swings his arm down hard and sends it straight to the corner of the court with all the force of a comet.

It was nice that he’d tried to apologise to her — even if it really was all her fault — and it leaves her hopeful that maybe, just maybe he doesn’t hate her.

Practice ends with a quick huddle in the centre, Yachi stands to the side a bit as the team sit on the floor and look up at the coach. He points out various things that he noticed. Little mistakes, things to work on, technical stuff that makes Yachi’s brain hurt, but she’s too busy being impressed by his knowledge to care. This is a coach who knows his team inside and out, and it’s easy to see how much they respect him.

“We have a practice match in a few days so I want you all rested and prepared for it. No sneaking in early for extra training.” His eyes are firmly locked on Miya Atsumu, who somehow manages to look both indignant and guilty. “We’re playing against Hakushu High, and I want to get this season off to a positive start for us.”

The team begins to mumble amongst themselves, and it may just be another figment of her imagination, but Yachi swears for a moment she sees something predatory gleam in a few eyes even as they excitedly discuss the upcoming game.

_ Scary. _

* * *

“So how did it go?” Her mother asks her over dinner. The bulb in the kitchen has broken so they’re eating by candlelight; they’ve not had time to stock up on things like spare bulbs yet and the flickering shadows are disconcerting to say the least.

“Oh, um, it went fine. I didn’t really do much today, just stood by one of the coaches and watched the team play.” It had been so loud in the gym with all the balls flying everywhere and the players shouting to one another. It had felt a little odd to suddenly step out of it at the end, as if the whole world had been hit by a mute button.

“I see, and what’s the team like?” Yachi pauses and takes a sip of her drink.

It’s a little difficult to answer her mother’s question right now. She’s only been to one practice after all. But if she had to describe them in a few words she’d say—

“Loud, and v-very energetic. They’re really good too, even I could see that.” Honestly she’d been too busy trying to put names to faces to take in the team dynamics.

“Do you think you’ll get on with them?”

Yachi manages to not wince at the question. Loud and energetic were not usually her go-to qualities when looking for friends to socialise with, so she understands why her mother is asking. The implied ‘can you handle being around them?’ stings even though she knows it’s coming from a place of concern.

She sets her chopsticks down on the plate and carefully considers her answer. It’s not a small question, if she can’t get on with them then there’s no way she’ll be able to become their manager.

She closes her eyes and thinks of Riseki, and Kita, and Miya Osamu taking the time to come and apologise to her for an accident that had been her fault.

_ Oh right, I still need to make it up to him for spoiling his lunch. _

Tobe had described the team as ‘rowdy’ and she could see why, but she’d never felt uncomfortable during practice apart from that one conversation with Osamu where her nerves had gotten the better of her. That may have been because she was with Coach Oomi for most of it, but she usually picked up pretty quickly if she wasn’t wanted somewhere. The players had seemed mostly neutral about her honestly. Again she has to wonder why they didn’t have a manager already but stops herself before her mind delves into a pit of conspiracy and spy movies.

“I-I’m not sure really. But I d-didn’t feel like I couldn’t get on with them if that makes sense.” It’s not instant acceptance and friendship, but she wasn’t expecting it to be. The most important thing is that it wasn’t a negative welcome, and she didn’t see any displeasure on the team’s faces when she was introduced.

Yachi could work with neutral for now.

“I see.” Her mother looks at her intently, one side of her mouth curls up into a half-smile. “I assume you’ll be attending practice tomorrow then as well.”

“Yes.” The word is out before she even has time to consider it. “I’ll be back around the same time if that’s alright.”

There’s potential for something new here, something she can sense just out of reach, a feeling of anticipation that startles her. She doesn’t know much about volleyball, has never felt a strong emotion towards any sport really, but she’s interested and for now that’s enough to carry on.

She spends the night splitting her time between looking up what the manager of a high school sports team does and trying to beat the basic rules of the game into her head.

* * *

Tobe greets her at the school entrance, stepping away from her own group of friends to come say hello. It feels a little pitiful that Yachi doesn’t have her own group of yearmate friends to meet up with, but it’s still early days.

“Good morning, Yachi-chan,” she says with a smile. Yachi returns it with her own trembling one, keenly aware of how Tobe’s friends turn to look at them.

“G-Good morning, Tobe-senpai.”

They exchange pleasantries before Tobe asks the question Yachi knows she’s been dying to ask the whole time.

“So,” she drawls with a grin. “How did your application go?”

Yachi wonders why she doesn’t mention the team by name and says, “I-I’ve got the position as a probationary one for now. T-The coach said it’s t-to see if I fit with the team.”

Surprise flares in Tobe’s eyes. “Really? Huh, that’s a new one. Though I can understand why.” She smiles at Yachi. “But hey, that’s great news, right? Are you excited about it?”

Excited. Nervous. Panicking. Yachi was feeling a lot of things at the moment.

“Y-Yes. I really wasn’t expecting it after what you told me. B-But I think it will be fun.” And she really did, or at least part of her did.

Tobe nods as they had towards the entrance doors, swinging her bag back and forth in a pattern that’s kind of hypnotic. Yachi forces her gaze straight ahead and clutches the strap of her own bag.

“I’m glad you were finally able to narrow down that list of yours. If you ever need help or anything, just let me know. I’m not a manager myself, but I know a few of the ones on other teams if you need any advice.”

It’s as if the sky has parted and a shining beam of golden light descends from high above illuminating Tobe as the answer to Yachi’s prayers.

She whirls around and clasps her hands together. “T-That would be very useful. Thank you, Tobe-senpai! I-I’ve never done something like this before a-and I want to do my best—”

Tobe lets her babble for a few minutes before offering to send some other managers in Yachi’s direction next week. They aren’t volleyball managers, but it’s a good start.

* * *

Thankfully, she’s able to find her way to the gym today without any problems. She has conquered the labyrinth for now, but those corridors still promise a gruesome fate of misdirection and lost souls should she stray from the path.

Quickly changing into her tracksuit — the red is a little jarring but it doesn’t look too bad — she slowly pushes open the doors. There are a couple of team members already inside setting up for practice and she’s pleased when she recognises a few faces.

There’s Kita, and Ojiro, as well as another boy she knows is another third year. They all look over when she enters, and it’s a point of pride that she doesn’t immediately cower behind the door.

“H-Hello,” she squeaks and wrings her hands together.

“Good afternoon, Yachi-chan. I’m glad ya were able to find the gym this time,” Kita says from behind the cart of balls he’s wheeling over to the side. 

She laughs nervously. “Y-Yeah. I-I’m still getting used to it, but better than yesterday, right? Anyway, do you need help setting up?” That’s something she can help with, right?

Kita nods. “I think Aran needs some help with the nets. They seem to be winning.”

Yachi looks over, and sure enough, Ojiro looks quite tangled in the netting. She hurries over and starts to flutter about nervously, not sure where to pull and worried about worsening the situation. She finds the end and starts to tug it over, and soon enough, he’s free.

“Ah, thanks for that.” He smiles at her — it’s a nice smile — and holds out a hand. “I’m Ojiro Aran. I don’t think I introduced myself yesterday.”

There’s a very calming presence to him — but different to Kita’s aura — and Yachi smiles back and shakes his hand.

“Y-Yachi Hitoka at your service. I-I’m looking forward to working together.”

Kita calls out from the corner. “I promise Aran isn’t usually so flummoxed by nets, he tends ta be more competent than that.” 

Ojiro blushes and points an accusing finger in Kita’s direction. “I don’t want ta hear that from the guy who nearly drowned in a ball cart in his first year.”

“Maybe not, but it’s been two years since then, and I like ta think I’ve improved a little since then,” Kita says in a completely deadpan voice. Ojiro sighs like he’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders, and Yachi looks between the two of them. There’s familiarity between them, the argument feels well-worn and friendly, full of gently teasing instead of ill intent.

The other third year approaches, and she jolts when he gives her a short bow. “Hello, my name is Oomimi Ren. I’m a third year middle blocker.” Yachi has a vague sense of what that is — a defensive position — and bows in return.

“N-Nice to meet you, Oomimi-senpai.”

Oomimi has a stern face and her natural tendency is to shrink away, but she fights against it. She’s going to have to get used to their height and judging a book by its cover is not considered a good approach to forming opinions of people.

The four of them spend the next few minutes setting up the court. Ojiro patiently explains how to set up the net — though her height causes a bit of an issue and at one point she has to jump — while Omimi and Kita deal with other things. They’re all polite and friendly, talking amongst themselves and asking her the standard questions: how are you settling in, which class are you in, what do you think of the school, etc.

Yachi is starting to relax when the doors swing open, and the rest of the team start to trickle in. Her shoulders hunch, and she moves to stand by the door and settle herself for another session of observation. A hand taps her on the shoulder, and she turns around to see Ojiro behind her. He looks unsure, and she worries if she’s done something wrong.

_ Did she not set up the net right? Was it going to break? Did she need to jump again in front of everyone? _

“Thanks for yer help, Yachi-chan.” He rubs the back of his head and looks towards the door just as the Miya twins walk through. “Uh, just wanted to ask if everythin’ went okay yesterday. I saw Osamu talkin’ ta ya and he mentioned somethin’ about an apology.”

Yachi blinks as mortification starts to set in.

_ Oh gosh, do they all know?! _

Her cheeks turn warm, and she clasps her hands together — if she doesn’t do that they’ll just be flying about everywhere due to her nerves.

“O-Oh I-I....I bumped into him in the c-cafeteria a few days ago and s-spilled my lunch all over him. I-I- guess he thought it was his fault, b-but it was mine.” This was never going to go away, was it? That moment was going to be the team’s first impression of her, and there wasn’t anything she could do to change it.

“Huh, that’s not how he tells it,” Ojiro says while stroking his chin. “I got the impression he barreled into ya because he was fightin’ with Atsumu again, and he was in a really bad mood for practice that day.”

Before Yachi can process that information, practice is starting and she resumes her observations. There is one small difference today, she has come prepared with pens and one of her new notebooks. It’s red with a pretty flower design in the centre. She clicks the lid off of one of her pens and opens the first page; the doodle of the grinning fox she drew last night smiles up at her from the corner of the page before she turns her focus to the court.

Time to learn.

* * *

Practice goes much the same as yesterday, only this time the three third years she spoke with this morning wave her goodbye as she leaves. She waves back and pretends she doesn’t hear the rest of the team whispering.

Today was mainly running drills and she actually got to help a bit, passing balls up to coach Oomi as he spiked them for the first years to practice receiving. From what she understands, receiving is probably the most important skill in volleyball, at least that’s what it feels like, because it helps keep the ball ‘alive’ — she may have had a brief vision of a smiling ball with big sparkly eyes when coach explained it to her — and stops the other team from scoring.

Towards the end, they’d had a pretty good rhythm going on, and it was fascinating to watch the boys jump for the ball and send it flying — or not in some cases. She’s looking forward to reviewing her notes afterwards, and her success of managing to talk to some of the players without fleeing feels like a real accomplishment.

The train is busy as usual and all the seats are taken, so she doesn’t get a chance to read her book like she’d planned. Even more people get on at the next stop, and she starts to worry when the bodies start moving towards her. She’s easily the shortest person here, and no one is looking at her. 

Someone trips or shoves another person, and there’s a domino reaction as the man in front of her starts to fall towards her. Yachi can’t find her voice, and she waits for the blow with tense shoulders.

“Watch it!”

Before the man topples over her, a hand grabs her arm and pulls her to the side. Space and air at last! She gasps and clutches her bag tighter. While normally grateful for her ability to blend into the background, that was scary.

The hand on her arm lets go, and her saviour speaks. “Hey, are ya alright?”

She lets out a breath and turns to face her rescuer only to gasp because she knows him. She’s seen him today and yesterday at volleyball practice.

_ Gah! What was his name again? He wasn’t a first year, and didn’t he have a special position or something? Come on Yachi, think! You’ve looked at that photo sheet at least twenty times today. _

“A-Akagi-san?”

The boy looks at her before his eyes widen in recognition. “Oh hey, yer the new manager, right?”

The crowd of passengers box them into their little space by the wall, and it looks like she’s going to have another team member conversation today.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry for the delay in getting this out, I've been working on a couple of other things since the new year started but this is always on my list for completion! I hope you enjoyed the chapter and big thank you to everyone who has left a comment or kudos so far :) 
> 
> Feel free to come say hello on[ my twitter](https://twitter.com/Jen_B93) if you want, I post snippets from my WIP's and sometimes cool graphics to go with my fics as well! As usual a massive thank you to my beta reader [vanellabean11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanellabean11/pseuds/vanellabean11) for all their hard work.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This idea has been building in my head for a while and I'm super excited to start it. I love Yachi, she's one of my favourite characters and I hope to do her justice. Hopefully, you like the fic and where I go with it. We know so little about Inarizaki that there will be some OC's but my focus will be on Yachi and her relationship with the volleyball club. I'm going to try and update it every 1-2 weeks and we'll see how it goes. 
> 
> Other ships that will make appearances: BokuAka, AtsuHina and I'm thinking about some others as well. But they won't appear for a while yet.
> 
> Feel free to come say hi on[ my twitter](https://twitter.com/Jen_B93) if you want and a massive thank you as usual to my beta reader [vanellabean11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/vanellabeannn11/pseuds/vanellabeann11) for all their hard work, they've been super busy so I really appreciate all of their help!


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